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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1915-8-26, Page 6POPULARITY OF • • GROWS HIS MAJESTY DOING "HIS BIT" IN THE WAR. Attending to His Royal Duties With Tact and Wisdom. The following from the New York World, which has never been Prone to say complimentary things about British royalty, is as significant as it is interesting: While the British statesmen are snaking shreds and tatters of each other's reputation in their publie quarrels, King George goes quietly on his way attending to the duties of his position,"playing the game" as far as he Imself is coneerned with great discretion and wisdom. His popu- larity with his subjects has wonder- fully increased accordingly, which is all the more remarkable because it was only in March, 1914, that the Rouse of Commons witnessed an out- burst against the sovereign, led by the Radical and Labor members, which had not been known there for nearly a century. It was at the time of the Ulster crisis. Had to Coax Kitchener. When the war began he kept him- self in the background except for or- namental occasions, not having the constitutional privilege of his cousin, William II., of being the leader of the army in any sense of the word. It was only after much tactful persua- sion that he obtained permission from Lord Kitchener for the Prince of Wales to remain at the front perman- ently. The King himself has been with the troops for only a short visit of a, few days last fall. He has re- cently returned from a visit to Ad- miral Jellicoe and the navy. But not a day passes that he is not engaged upon his humane labors for the soldiers, and these are, after all, of no mean importance in arousing loyalty, patriotism and enthusiasm for the war. The people have also be- come acquainted with their King through his daily intercourse in a way which before the war would have seemed hardly feasible, since it has meant the removal of many artificial, barriers, But King George's kindly, simple nature has stood the test and the warm sympathy he has shown for the soldiers has become an asset for the Government. Aid for Wounded. The royal estate in Scotland at Balmoral has been in use as a con- valescent hemfor wounded officers for many months, while Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace are the centre of numerous arrange- ments, charitable in their nature, for the benefit of the soldiers. Begin- ning early in June, the King, assisted by the Queen, began entertaining daily parties of convalescent soldiers. at tea at Buckingham Palace, twenty men being invited for each occasion, many of them being allowed to bring along their nurses or their near rela- tives. Tea is laid out in the gardens with as much careful thought on the part of His Majesty as if he were giv- ing a garden pasty to the court, and the men remain throughout the whole afternoon enjoying the sunshine and fresh air and talking to the King. For several weeks this hospitality has been supplemented by drives in the royal motors and carriages, as King George has ordered that the royal mews be devoted to this purpose as much as possible. Parties are made up every day at the different London hospitals, and Sir Charles Fitzwilliam, the Crown Equerry, and Capt. Ben- baw, superintendent of the mews, send around motor brakes or carriages to take the King's guests into the country. Men of One of the Best Russian Infantry Regiments. This photograph shows the crack Russian Fonogorijski Regiment, which has been doing heroic work in the fighting around Warsaw. The pic- ture gives an excellent idea of the type of men that compose the best of the Russian infantry battalions. O'LEARY IS THEIR HERO. Six Germans to One Irishman is Irish Fighting Measure Now. A. British correspondent at the front with the expeditionary force in Flan- ders sends the following graphic de- scriptions of life in the trenches: "This trench warfare is so utterly unprecedented that one often searches the mind in vain for some suitable parallel which will make people real- ize what it means to have to live for days, sometimes for weeks en end in a narrow ditch. I"I was in some trenches the other day. We were having tea round a table in a dug -out. The German trenches were very close, and if you had a fancy to finish with life all you had to do was to poke your head for an instant above the sandbags of the parapet. "On the German side an officer had tried to do this that morning. Five minutes afterwards three men with a stretcher had taken the body away. "Men who live like this, almost en tete-a-tete with the Germans, positive- ly get to know their enemies by sight. They give the snipers names, and one hears of displays of frightfulness by Karl and Fritz. One of our snipers, a private, who had found himself an ad- mirable spot to operate from, was quite an authority on the inmates of the trenches only a biscuit -throw away. It was he, incidentally, who 'bagged' the German officer that morning. He regaled his mates with fabulous tales of 'old Germans with their long white beards,' who reash- ed about their trenches. "The other day I was in a position which is less than 30 yards from the German trenches, where the few men holding the place squat doubled up in a narrow trench with a stack of bombs at hand to repel an attack. I sat down on the ground beside the Irishmen who were in that foul place and chatted with them. In a piece of mirror stuck up on the parades I could see the German trench at a dis- tance considerably less than the width of the Strand at its narrowest point. 'There's an Alleman that comes out o' that trinch one and agin,' they said to me in hoarse whispers. 'Sure, and we often see him pattering about, a gran' big fellow with great whiskers on him. 'Tis a pity not to shoot him. We could get him every time.' I touched the mirror to move it. The next instant two bullets struck the sandbags on the parados on either side of the glass. "The Germans do not realize that the Irishmau is first and last a sports- man to whom fair play is as the breath of life in his body. In the eyes of the Irish soldiers with whom I have talked out here, the German sol- dier, ravisher of women, slayer of children, and torturer of prisoners, is a foul and unclean thing. Therefore not Roger Casement, but Mike O'Leary, is their hero; O'Leary not so much for his splendid gallarftry generally speaking, but for the con- crete circumstances that he, an Irish -I man, alone and unaided, killed six Germans. Henceforth six Germans to one Irishman is the fighting measurei of the Mali troops. "'Down the trinch here,' these Irish soldiers said to me that day, 'you'll find the grave of a French woman whom the Boches killed. There's an- other under the bricks in the farm there. The dead lie thick here, You can't put spade to the earth without digging them up.'" .14 Getting Ahead. "You've got to be pretty smooth to get to the top nowadays," "Yes, and you usually get smooth on the top before you got there." Caring for Crippled. The officials of the royal household, whose business it is to follow. the King's example, have been inviting the soldiers to their country places for convalescence where hospital, treatment was not necessary. One of the most important charit- able projects in which the King is in- terested is out at Roehampton, where At large residence, Roehampton House, bas been fitted up for the soldiers and sailors who have lost limbs in the war. The old custom was to discharge such men from the hospital after the amputation and send the artificial limb after them. Of course, not being misfits and frequently were useless. properly fitted, they were generally' Early in the war an appeal was made for a .different method in treating these unfortunate men, and the result is now seen at Roehampton House, where the limbless sailors and soldiers are sent to be fitted by the most ex- pert makers of artificial limbs. Fifty thousand dollars was granted from the Prince of Wales Fund, the War Of- fice, the Red Cross and other organiz- ations and King George and Queen Mary gave generously from their pri- vate purses. They make frequent visits to the men in the rounds which they take among the hospitals almost every day. Hear Him? Oh, how we drat That prudent soul Who+ now pita in His Winter Oat EUROPE SWAMPED IN DEBT. Britain's Ability to Finance a De- structive War. England is now paying out daily fifteen million dollars, while the daily war expenditures of all Europe are sixteen times as great. Great Britain is spending the most money, with Ger- many second, Russia third and France fourth. One reason for Eng- land's heavier outlay is the greater pay she gives to her volunteer army of 3,000,000 men. In the other- coun- tries the conscripted soldier receives practically no pay. The end of the first year of this greatest of all wars shows that the banks of the four leading belligerents collectively have over $100,000,000 more gold than when the war began. The banks of France and Russia have approximately $800,000,000 each of the yellow metal, but both have fallen slightly during the year. The Bank of Germany has gained $170,000,000 gold since this time in 1914, but its total is still $200,000,000 below that of either France or Russia. The Bank of England gained 70,000,0O0 gold in the last twelve months. In discussing Britain's ability to finance a destructive war, Sir George Paish, the ablest economist in Europe, enumerates some interesting facts. First of all England owns twenty bil- lions of foreign securities, of which only one -fortieth has been sold during the year. The nation has built 1,225,- 000 tons of new ships, exceeding by a vast margin all the tonnage destroyed by hostile fleets and subinaaines, In normal years Englishmen invest hun- dreds of millions in foreign stocks and bonds. At present the surplus is going into Government war loans. At the end of the present year Bri- tain's total debt will reach nine bil- lions. The other countries are ac- cumulating burdens which will be even more difficult for them to carry. For generations half the civilized world will still be struggling to liqui- date debts contracted to -day as the sequel of regal pride. TRADES THAT CURE. Recommended by Doctors on Hygienic Grounds. A great deal is written about trades that kill—lead-poisoning in the pot- teries, "phossy-jaw" in the match factories, and so forth—but few peo- ple are aware that there are many trades which are medically recom- mended by the profession on hygienic grounds. Thus, men who lay asphalts in the streets rarely suffer from a day's ill- ness, while those employed in places where a large amount of electricity is generated enjoy a surprising abund- ance of vitality. Workers in salt -mines enjoy almost complete immunity from rheumatism. The healthiest occupation of all is said to be that in the petroleum works. Here the men never suffer from sore throats, diphtheria, quinsy, or kin- dred ailments. Indeed, petroleum fumes are so good for the throat, that it is quite common for sufferers from throat affections to "take the fumes," just as people "take the wa- ters" at Harrogate or Bath, England. A well-known tenor who was in danger of losing bis voice once took on a job in one of the petroleum -refining rooms as an ordinary employee, with the result that he was soon able to resume his work on the concert plat- form. Which ieminda us that singing is excellent for consumption. Some- ; times it assista as a aura., bat it is nearly alwaya effective as a pre- PERSONALIA. Chatty Paragraphs About Famous Folk of the Moment. The Queen has always held strong views about exaggerated styles, and is showing her good sense and taste by holding aloof from the absurd short - skirt fashion, In the words of a fa- mous Court dressmaker, "Her Majes- ty dresses to look becomingly, and not to endorse the whimsicalities of the inventive designer." A reasonable claim to be considered one of the best -dressed men in the British House of Commons could be' put forward on behalf of a member who is not very well known—Mr. Wil- liam MacGeagh Maccaw, Unionist, M. P. for West Down, and a great tra- veller. He affects light clothes, and always look very spick-and-span. The reason why Mr. Hilaire Belloc, who has been right about the war in most things, except in regard to shells, can speak so authoritatively about the topographical features of the battlegrounds in the West, is that for years he made a practice of spend- ing his holidays in walks through the country lanes of France and Belgium. If one is interested in contrasts, one should see Lord Ancaster and the Earl of Craven march, arm -in -arm, from the Upper into the Lower House. In the one case the suggestion is that of an old-world country squire who might have stepped out of Dickens's pages; in the other case the sugges- tion is that of a Beau Brummel mod- ernized. The cravat exquisites in the British Parliament, of which Mr. "Lulu" Har- court and the Earl -of Craven are the best known, include Lord Farquhar, who these sunny days has been evok- ing the admiration of all interested in such a minor matter as neckwear by a' sumptuous white silk cravat executed in masterly style. Mr. Harcourt and Lord Craven, on the other hand, pre- fer black. One's instinct is to picture an Am- bassador as a severe, official -looking man who is never seen in the street except in the orthodox tall hat and frock -coat. To meet the popular Ital- ian Ambassador in London, however, is to be disillusionized. He wears a bowler -hat, a lounge suit, and a black tie, carries a smart, silver -knobbed cane, and reinforces his sight with a monocle. There is a peculiar significance in Lord Robert Cecil going to the For- eign Office in a crisis like the present —he is the new Under-Secretary—for the Cecils have always bad a penchant for diplomacy, and it may be remem- bered his father, the late Lord Salis- bury, accompanied Lord Beaconsfield to Berlin when that statesman brought back "peace with honor." The Archbishop of Canterbury, who delivered such an impressive sermon at the Sheerness memorial service, is unequalled amongst living divines for his ability to deliver funeral orations. He uses the simplest of language, and obtains his effects by what is more a heart to heart talk than a piece of studied eloquence. Speaking extem- pore, he succeeds where a grandiose and more ambitious sermon would fail. .14 According to Professor Cole, fleas are very fond of music, particularly that of the trombone. If a man fella into the water and splat3hes, a shark will wait until he finishes splashing before trying to eat ventive. hint. GERMANS IN RUSSIA. Why They Are Hated and Feared by the Good-hearted Moujik. The Russian peasant is good-heart- ed with the soul of a child. He bears all the repression of the Government as well as of the landlords and of- ficials with such patience that all the foreign students of Russian life were astonished when they became familiar with the nature of the Russian "mou- jik," says the London Times. His loy-I alty to authority is extreme, as we can see particularly in regard to the: Imperial edict suppressing vodka. But let even' a private person ok even' the Government try to touch land or to modify his traditional system of cultiyating or administering it and he "sees red." No law, no most radical measure of repression can stop the' Russian peasant in the fight for the' integrity of his "mother nourish - earth." Laboring Russia lives by the earth; it is bread, existence, every- thing, and the laborer will die for its safety. Agricultural Russia hates Germany more than commercial and intellect- ual Russia does, and that hate has its historical ground. Everybody knows that the greatest part of the most fruitful districts of Russia be- longed to the nobles for centuries, and the peasants, until the reign of Alexander II. were slaves of these' nobles. In order to increase the in-' come from the lands the landlords,' thanks to the German influence on Russia, mostly adopted the German method of agriculture, and for this' purpose enormous numbers of Ger-1 man managers were appointed throughout Russia. They were given such powers that they could even punish the peasants with the knout. Thousands and thous- ands of Russian peasants were sent to Siberia or into the army in the days' when the army was not yet conscript.: Later these German managers gradually ruined their masters and became directly or indirectliy the pro- I prietors of the best part of theirapro-I perty. Sometimes the peasants re- volted, but they were powerless to de- fend their rights because the Govern- ment always supported the German, owners or managers, even with the help of military forces at need. Thus the idea that "the Germans will possess the whole land of the peasants" has been deeply ingrained in the mind of the Russian landsman' for centuries. If the Government had not defend- ed the German interests in Russia no single German landlord, manager or colonist would have remained alive in the Russian empire. That is a truth, and as a curious fact 1 can say that whereas a Jew is often welcom- ed in a village as a keen business man a German has always been bated. So we can imagine what moral ef- fect must be produced among the Russian peasants when the official news reached the numberless villages of Russia. "The Germans are marching to take our land, to violate our wives and daughters and to kill our ol,a peo- ple." (An old man is the most re- spected person among the Russian peasants,) Sure. He—What would you do if we were adrift in an open boat without food? She—Couldn't we get it to turn turtle and have soup? Some of the skyscrapers in New York are eo high that the top storeys are uninhabitable owing to their rocking movement. RUMANIA IS GAY UNDER NEW QUEEN VICTORIA'S GRANDDAUGHTER MAKES COURT LIFE GAY, o Would Have Her Daughter Wed the Prince of Wales, It Is Said. Rumania does not know from daY to day whether or not its Government will plunge the country into war. Bucharest, Ha capital, is therefore making merry while it may and it is having a season of gayety outrivalling anything in its past experience. To call it the "pocket Paris" now would be a travesty upon the Paris of to- day, clad in mourning garments, som- bre and sad of countenance. The new Queen, formerly Princess Marie of Edinburgh, the granddaugh- ter of the Russian Czar Alexander 11. and the English Queen Victoria, has at last the ehance to remodel the Bu- charest court after her Own ideas, which would make the capital as charming as Paris, as sumptuous as Petrograd, as riotous as Monte Carlo, and as important to diplomacy and society as London. The most distinguished statesmen in Europe have given Bucharest a great deal of their attention during the past year, playing the game for Rumania's neutrality or for her par- ticipation in the war upon one or the other side. Money has been sent in- to the country from mysterious sources and everybody seems to have plenty to spend upon the pleasures of life. Dowager Queen Disapproves. The Dowager Queen Elizabeth (Carman Sylva) is living in strict re- tirement, and it is said that her health is far from satisfactory. For many years she has been subject to a nerv- ous disease which increases with age, and her eyesight is weak. It is rumor- ed that she is threatened with blind- ness. She, of course, strongly disap- proves of madcap gayeties at the pre- sent time. The King, upon his throne for nine months and fully alive to the gravity of the problems his country has to solve, looks with disfavor upon this carnival of riotous living. Following the example of his uncle, the late King Charles, a Prussian officer and a Hohenzollern prince, he has always sought to make the soldiers lead Spartan life for the sake of efficiency, and especially at this critical time when Rumania's. army may have the opportunity of rendering military ser- vices either to the allies or to the cen- tral powers so important as to de- mand almost any price in territory. Officers are Gay. But the army officers, doubtless thinking to "make hay while the sun shines," are the gayest of the gay. They make their first appearance for the day in the afternoon drive upon Chausee, where fashionable people crowd one another in well -turned -out motor cars or in carriages drawn by magnificent big horses driven by Russian coachmen in long velvet coats of blue belted in by rainbow -hued sashes. The Queen's carriage or mo- tor is frequently among them, any vacant seating space piled high with white flowers, and for five o'clock! tea at the Cafe Capsha, on the Gal - lea Victoria, or at the Athenee Palace Hotel, she mingles with her husband's subjects with the same democratic in- difference which she abrogated to herself as a right when Crown Prin- cess in any and all cities of Europe. The army men, in bright -toned dress uniforms resplendent with gold braid, throng the promenade in the Gallea Vidtorfa, clicking their spurs and dis- playing their ornamental swords, dividing the attention of the ladies with the perfumed dandies who send their linen to be laundered, and import London tailors to clothe their corset- ed figures at fabulous prices. The la- dies are profuse in their smiles and in the latest art of Parisian cosmetics --of a year ago, since Paris itself has nothing later than that in her con- tributions to women of pleasure, while gowns and hats are as bizarre as Ori- ental Bucharest and about ten times as expensive as Paris in her heyday. Her Matrimonial Plans. Queen Marie's sympathies are be- lieved to centre around the future of her children and the matrimonial al- liances she has been trying for sever- al years to arrange for her son, the Crown Prince, and her eldest daugh- ter, Princess Elizabeth. The latter she wants to marry to the Prince of Wales, and the mother' e indignation has been intense that the English court did not think the Princess good enough for the match. Queen Mary's paternal grandmother was a little Polish girl, Countess Rredy, while Princess Elizabeth is descended from the Russian sovereigns as well as the English, and is besides quite the love- liest Princess in Europe. The suggested marriage of the Crown Prince of Rumania to the Czar's eldest daughter, Granddtithess Olga, has been criticized in Russia else as a match not brilliant enough. 1 The Cyttic's View. "There's something in this world besides money." "Yep," said the cynic, "there's the poorhouse." From the Middle West BETWEEN ONTARIO AND MI- ` TISH COLUMBIA. Items From Provinces Where Many Ontario Boys and Girls Aro Living, Winnipeg I3oard of Control are seeking to give householders cheaper gas. The Government of Saskatchewan liquor stores undertake the delivery of booze ordered. The chief of police of Tuxedo, Man., while on his rounds, killed a snake 5 feet 8 inch ee long. The C.N.R. has completed laying the steel connecting the Maryfield line with Estevan, Seek, The aoldiers in Scarce° camp were not allowed to vote op the prohibition plebiscite in Alberta. One Prince Alberta hotel was put up at auction since the abolishing of the bar in Saskatchewan. • Special arrangements were made for the soldiers at Sewell Camp to visit the fair at.Brandon. The bars of Alberta were not closed . , on the day the plebiscite on prolubi- aion was voted upon, It' is claimed that there are alien enemies employed in making war munitions in Winnipeg shops. Dr. Mahood, of Calgary Health De- partment, urges citizens to be blow- lated against typhoid fever. Henry 'Page, of Edmonton, has four sons in Canadian contingents and an- other awaiting his turn. Winnipeg gathered in June $17,555 from dog licenses, $9,924 from autos and $9,400 from cigarette stores. Swift Current may be the point of distribution for the 2,000 harvesters needed in Saskatchewan this year. R. Savage, a Mormon, of Glenwood, Alta., has three sons with the Cana- dian troops fighting for the Empire. Western farmers need girls to tip sist on the farms, says Superinten- dent of Immigration Burke at Win- nipeg. Calgary pays a dentist and an eye, ear, nose and throat specialist each $150 per month to treat public school pupils. The widow of John Norquay, long premier of Manitoba, has been grant- ed $50 a month by the Provincial Government. The school teachers of Saskatche- wan have a committee to take up the question of a teachers' union on the British plan. Thomas Guest, telegraph operator, of Edmonton, offered Ottawa a device to control torpedoes by wireless three months ago. The Saskatchewan elevator at Shel- brook, while empty, was very mys- teriously burned to the ground des- pite rain -soaked surroundings. The offer of a telegraph unit for war service with the Canadians, made by Arthur J. Canton from Edmonton, was refused by Ottawa. W. G. Udell, of Loverna, Sask., was released on promising restitution when charged with getting $67 worth of groceries by worthless check. Calgary wives and dependents of soldiers at the front tell stories of little help from the patriotic funds of Canada; some suffer hardships. Manitoba fire losses for the first six months of this year were $311,340 under the year previous. Winnipeg contributed $54,643 of this amount. J. F. Bole, of Regina, head of the government liquor stores, says only five per cent. as much liquor was drunk in Saskatchewan since July first. Unless many back taxes overdue to Calgary are collected this year, se- vere retrenchments will be necessary next year in hospital and school grants as well as civic works. One of four men enjoying a drunk- en spree on Saskatchewan Govern- ment liquor in a Prince Albert shoe store was fined $150 and costs.'the three others were fined $50 each. Mrs. Ernest Pearce of Winnipeg, whose husband is at the front, has: gone to England to offer her services. She is a rifle shot, swordswoman, horse rider, motor cyclist, and nurse. Michael Driscoll, a farmer near Bassano, Alta., was acquitted on a theft charge at Calgary while the man accused of aiding and abetting him, Henry Kehoe, was given three months in jail. 34 BRITAIN HAD ONCE BIG ARMY. More Than Half -Million at Home and Abroad in 1809, A little more than a century ago, Britain, with a population of about a third its present size, was maintain- ing an immense army, scattered over the world. In 1809 the local militia alone numbered 200900,and these were kept in training until the peace of 1815. More than half a million men were garrisoned in the United Kingdom, another 22,000 regulars were fighting th Portugal, while in India, Ceylon, the West Indies, North America, the Mediterranean, Cape of Good Hope, and IVIsuleria were large bodies of British troops, struggling to keep the Empire together. Thirteen hundred regulars guarded the convicts of New South Wales, and 18,000 more were on the high seas. And, in spite of a long war, costinig $5,000,000 a week, the eountry man- aged to redeem millions of unfunded debt and shoW a brave front to the world, with bread at 1s. 10 a loaf.